Merger Talk: Public Taste Shift Could Enable Lorillard Deal

With shares trading at a premium right now -- up about 45% over the last 12 months -- there is talk that Reynolds American could acquire Lorillard.

With shares trading at a premium right now -- up about 45% over the last 12 months -- there is talk that Reynolds American could acquire Lorillard, a pairing of tobacco titans that would have once been viewed as unthinkable. But, at this point, U.S. lawmakers and regulators are exasperated as domestic corporations eye address swaps to foreign locations in order to reduce their tax obligations in America. Next, the two tobacco titans will have to tussle with Capitol Hill lawmakers and regulators over the formation of what amounts to a duopoly. But, now, American figureheads have softened, as they realize our tax base must be sustained.